=== Celtics fend off visiting Jazz ===
 
 Boston,  MA  (Sports Network) -  Paul Pierce scored  a game-high 23 points and
 Jeff  Green added 16  points off the bench as the Boston Celtics held on for a
 98-93 win over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday.
 
 Utah's  Al  Jefferson nailed  a jumper  with 1:56 to  play to  tie the game at
 93-93,  but  the Jazz were unable  to convert on  their next six shots and the
 Celtics escaped with the win.
 
 Following  Jefferson's  jumper, the  teams traded  missed baskets. Boston then
 worked  the ball in to Kevin Garnett, who was fouled but converted just one of
 the free throws.
 
 Mo  Williams then  fired up  a  deep jumper  that missed,  and Gordon  Hayward
 couldn't  convert the tip-in  and Utah was forced to foul Pierce, who buried a
 pair from the charity stripe to give Boston a 96-93 lead.
 
 Paul  Millsap missed a layup on the ensuing possession and Green corralled the
 rebound,  but couldn't keep his feet planted and turned it over on a traveling
 violation.
 
 The  Jazz then  threw it in to Jefferson,  who handed it off to Williams for a
 deep  3-pointer  that bounced off the  rim. Garnett controlled the rebound and
 was quickly fouled with 6.9 seconds remaining.
 
 Garnett converted the subsequent free throws to account for the final margin.
 
 "They outran us in the first half.  Second half we got back.  Wasn't any
 adjustment," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I just told the guys, 'You know
 after you score, you can't do your home run jog and wave at everybody.
 They're coming right back at you.'  And I thought we got caught off-guard in
 the first half with that, and the second half we were terrific."
 
 Celtics'  point guard Rajon Rondo extended his streak of games with 10 or more
 assists  to 32 despite  leaving the contest in the third quarter with an ankle
 injury.  Rondo briefly  went to the locker room before returning to the bench,
 but did not re-enter the game.
 
 "I have no idea. With sprained ankles, tomorrow you'll know more," Rivers said
 of Rondo's chances for playing Thursday.
 
 Millsap  and Jefferson  each  notched double-doubles  for  Utah, with  Millsap
 scoring  20 points  with 12  rebounds and  Jefferson netting  13 points  while
 pulling  down  14 boards. Hayward, Derrick  Favors and Williams each scored 14
 points for the Jazz, who had won two in a row entering the game.
 
 "I'm proud of the way our guys fought. I thought we hung in there, gave
 ourselves a chance to win. We had the chance to take the one-point lead there,
 had a good executed play had a good look at it but missed a shot, but the guys
 did a really good job at fighting for everything they got," Jazz coach
 Tyrone Corbin said.
 
 Utah  held a 25-20 lead after the first quarter after shooting 50 percent from
 the  field  in the  period. Millsap  poured in  eight points  in the frame and
 Williams added seven for the Jazz.
 
 Boston was able to cut it to 46-44 at the break. The Celtics led by as many as
 five  in the second quarter, but the Jazz closed the half on a 7-0 run sparked
 by a Marvin Williams 3-ball with 48 seconds left.
 
 The  game was knotted  up at 60-60 with five minutes left in the third, but an
 8-0 burst from the Celtics gave Boston a 68-60 lead at the 3:20 mark.
 
 Utah,  however,  cut it to 73-70  at the end of  the period on the strength of
 10-5 run started by a Hayward 3-pointer and ended with a Mo Williams triple.
 
 
                                   Game Notes
 
 Boston  is 3-0  since inserting Jason Terry and Brandon Bass into the starting
 lineup  ... The Celtics  have won four in a row and 11 of the last 16 meetings
 with the Jazz, now losers in five straight trips to Beantown.
 
 11/14 23:55:36 ET

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